ARTEMIS GALLERY Olmec Green Stone Ceremonial Hand Axe (Celt)

CAD 1,580.33or Best Offer15d, 14-Day Returns

Seller:artemisgallery(669)100%,
Location: Louisville, CO,
Ships to: Worldwide,
Item:381788292287Olmec Green Stone Ceremonial Hand Axe (Celt) Pre-Columbian, Olmec culture, ca. 1150 to 550 BCE. This is a greenstone (sometimes called "jade") tapered hand tool of a highly stylized ritual form with a sharp, curved blade. Research in the late 1990s and early 2000s pinpointed the source of "Olmec blue" jadeite at being in the lowland Motagua River near the modern day border of Guatemala and Honduras; stone from this source was carved and traded widely throughout early Mesoamerica. The value of jade for ancient people lay in its symbolic power: its color may have been associated with water and vegetation; later, the Maya would place jade beads in the mouths of the dead. Many scholars have argued that the demand for jadeite contributed to the rise of long distance trading networks and to the rise of urban centers in ancient Mesoamerica. This hand axe would have been an exceedingly valuable and rare piece of ceremonial art. Size: 7.1" L x 1.7" W x 0.85" H (18 cm x 4.3 cm x 2.2 cm) #115187 Condition: Chip to one end; cracked completely around middle with possible repair. Provenance: Ex - Private W. S. collection, Los Angeles, CA All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. All items come with a Certificate of Authenticity